1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to sporting events and other large venue gatherings, and more particularly, to a method for improving the security and safety of persons attending such events.
2. Description of the Relevant Art
Sporting events, such as college and professional level baseball, basketball, and football games, are often attended by tens of thousands of sporting fans. While almost all fans are good-natured, and simply come to have a good time cheering-on their favorite teams, there have been numerous occasions when persons in attendance become rowdy. Fan violence continues to challenge the efforts of venue security staff and local police to protect patrons at sporting venues. For example, in August 2011, a fight broke out among fans attending a pre-season football game between the Oakland Raiders and the San Francisco 49ers held at Candlestick Park, resulting in a fistfight in the stands, and a severe beating in a restroom; two shootings were later reported in the parking lot of the stadium. Recently, a legislator in the State of California proposed legislation making it a misdemeanor for anyone added to a “ban list” from attending a professional sporting event held within the State of California.
Fan violence has led to serious injuries, which cause some fans to question whether sports stadiums are safe for themselves and their families. Such incidents also result in increased costs to team owners and stadium operators for additional insurance, litigation fees, and expanded police and security presence. In turn, these increased costs are often passed along to loyal fans in the form of increased ticket prices, negatively impacting attendance and sales. Incidentally, the aforementioned problems are not limited to sporting events. The same concerns arise during large rock music concerts and other large entertainment venues where crowds of fans gather.
While the problems posed by fan violence are clearly recognized, the police and security officials whose duty it is to maintain order have not been able to make optimum use of available technologies to deal with such problems, and have, instead, been relying primarily on outdated, reactive tactics. Currently, efforts used to counter fan violence rely upon the visible presence of police and security staff interspersed throughout the stadium to deter such incidents, and to detect and respond to fan violence after it happens.
There are some sporting venues which require fans to pass through metal detectors to screen out obvious weapons. In addition, some venues include video cameras and recording systems to monitor or record high-traffic areas of a stadium. Even when such video images are monitored in real time, the person watching such video images can not judge, before the fact, whether persons being observed have violent tendencies. It is only when something appears out of the ordinary, as when a violent act is already in progress, that any action is taken.
Apart from conventional fan violence, our post 9-11 world also requires team owners and stadium operators to be consider terror attacks by suicidal fanatics. Fears that a terrorist might strike at a sporting event, where large crowds are gathered, are a genuine concern. Security personnel routinely inspect backpacks and large purses of fans upon entry, but the identity of those fans is an unknown.
As should be apparent, current security measures employed at sporting venues are not pro-active. In particular, they do not include significant steps to exclude from the venue persons who are likely to be violent and/or dangerous.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to make sporting venues safer for attending fans.
It is another object of the present invention to reduce incidents of physical injuries to sporting fans as a result of violent acts of other fans.
It is still another object of the present invention to reduce costs borne by team owners and stadium managers in order to provide a reasonably acceptable level of safety and security.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a method of detecting, and excluding from the venue, persons with past histories of violent tendencies, preferably before they enter the venue.
A further object of the present invention is to assist and aid police and venue security personnel in identifying and detaining person who actively engage in violent acts within the venue during an event.
These and other objects of the invention will become more apparent to those skilled in the art as the description of the present invention proceeds.